# Diablo 3: Blizzard brings gold farming to its gamers **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [August 1, 2011, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087 "2011-08-01T19:32:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/21 "2011-08-02T11:42:50Z")
Paying money to have an advantage over people is cheating, and is why I don’t play Facebook games. Not that I would have bought the game anyway–Diablo was always fun to watch, but I never enjoyed actually playing it. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/22 "2011-08-02T14:27:16Z")
[QUOTE=Max the Immortal] I couldn’t tell you how pvp rankings will work in D3, but I can imagine how much grinding honor/conquest in WoW would suck if you had to constantly fight against players who paid to skip the grind. [/QUOTE] Probably as much as it sucks to be a casual player who doesn’t have 40 hours a week to burn in grinding to get the best gear or the coolest mounts in the game. I’m not seeing the problem here. Much as in life, some people can go out and buy a really nice car, and some folks have to grind for it if they really want it. Perhaps the people who grind for it will appreciate it more…or not, since grinding in WoW is (to me) so inane. But whether you grind for it or not, if you actually want to use it effectively in a PvP setting you still need to know how to use your character properly. Gear only takes you so far, and I’m sure you’ve seen plenty of your own examples of uber geared characters played by some moron who doesn’t know how to use his character very well or play in PvP very well and ends up getting owned. -XT ---
**Author:** ![Miltonyz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Miltonyz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miltonyz)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/23 "2011-08-02T15:44:43Z")
They should make two tiers of the same gear. Let the gear have the same stats but give it a different name depending on if the gear is purchased or obtained by grinding. Then people that work for it can have unique gear wihout alienating the casual player. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/24 "2011-08-02T16:13:35Z")
I’ve never seen the point in paying someone else to play a game for me, but if others want to do so, it’s no skin off my nose. I can see how a PVPer would be annoyed by this, but that’s never really been a significant part of the game for me, anyway. And it’s going to happen anyway; might as well keep an eye on it. ---
**Author:** ![shijinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/25 "2011-08-02T16:49:27Z")
Diablo is about the loot, and has always been. from the first ‘ding!’ of the cracked gem to having recurring nightmares of clicking on a sea of gold lettered fonts, it has always been about feeding the addiction to getting more loot. pvp was always a sideshow, and multiplayer didn’t add a deeper dimension to pve tactics as much as getting better loot and experience faster, while playing with company. adding real world value, however small, to the loot is surely a clincher. now they literally _would_ be loot! i didn’t understand then, and i do not understand now, how other people possessing better gear than me affected my own enjoyment of the game. you have a choice to stick to the auction transacting in gold, you have a choice of who you play with, you have a choice to avoid the real world option altogether. > [@wheresgeorge04](#): > > Really? Remember all the cookie cutter MF Skelly Necros and older Whirlwind Barbs, and Hammerdins? Just like in WoW, the randomness only lasted as long as you were poor in-game. Once you found an item worth a bunch of duped SoJs, or a few duped high runes, you tossed your old junk and kitted up in D2’s version of Tier 11, whatever the best exapmles of your character all wore. > > Joe it’s been some time (10 years?! :eek:) , but iirc there is no fixed version of the item you want? unlike in WoW where once the item dropped from the boss you want, that’s it. in WoW, you get loot like it’s your paycheck (minus 50 dkp!). in Diablo, you get loot like you’re hitting a jackpot. and now the jackpot can be measured in dollars. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/26 "2011-08-02T17:13:51Z")
I haven’t played D2 in a long while (I haven’t really gamed much lately) so I haven’t been keeping up with the latest news. So is D3 going to be free to play or will it be a monthly fee like WoW? Because if it’s free to play, that would probably be the reason behind this move. It would let Blizzard make some reoccurring revenue off the game without having to charge users a monthly fee. ---
**Author:** ![shijinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/27 "2011-08-02T17:36:07Z")
except for World of Warcraft, everything on [Battle.net](http://Battle.net) has been free to play since its inception. eta that even WoW is free to play now, up to level 20. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/28 "2011-08-02T18:17:31Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Paying money to have an advantage over people is cheating, and is why I don’t play Facebook games. Not that I would have bought the game anyway–Diablo was always fun to watch, but I never enjoyed actually playing it. No, it’s cheating only if it’s against the rules. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/29 "2011-08-02T22:21:16Z")
> [@shijinn](#): > > except for World of Warcraft, everything on [Battle.net](http://Battle.net) has been free to play since its inception. I knew that, I just didn’t know whether or not D3 was going to follow the WoW business model. > [@](#): > > eta that even WoW is free to play now, up to level 20. That, I didn’t know, WOW! (heh) I did a bit of looking, and it sounds like D3 will probably be free to play. I also learned from [IGN that](http://pc.ign.com/articles/118/1185020p2.html): > [@](#): > > - The [Battle.net](http://Battle.net) Auction Houses will be separated based on region. > > - There’ll be a “nominal” flat fee charged by Blizzard for every item you post on the Auction House, as well as a transaction fee when the item is sold. > > - The money you make on the Diablo III auction house can be filtered to a Blizzard account, where it can be used to buy other Blizzard products, or filtered through a as of yet unnamed third-party service into an external account, in which case it’s your money to use however you see fit. There will be a percentage fee for exporting the money beyond the bounds of Blizzard’s system, though, so you’ll take a hit on your total revenue. > > - If you do decide to keep the money in Blizzard’s system, (as opposed to the “as of yet unnamed third-party” PayPal?) you can’t export it afterwards. I also read on the D3 wiki that Hardcore mode will supposedly not have trading for real money. But I’m not sure if that’s true, since the given reference for that fact is the article referenced above, and that article doesn’t say that. ---
**Author:** ![Palooka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/palooka/32/2902_2.png) [@Palooka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palooka)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/30 "2011-08-02T22:55:11Z")
I bet Blizzard waves their fee when you debit auction house receipts to a World of Warcraft Rewards Visa. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/31 "2011-08-02T23:25:24Z")
> [@shijinn](#): > > eta that even WoW is free to play now, up to level 20. OK, now \*that \*is pure evil, crack pusher marketing :D. [QUOTE=Tom P.] Something I just thought of (I am not sure if it will be a problem for Diablo 3, most people won’t make money here): If I, a Norwegian, sell some items to people from Italy, Canada, South Korea and Australia, all on a server placed in the US… Which country gets the taxes from my income? Quite a few countries are trying to place VAT on electronic items like ebooks and computer games (for example from Steam), even is the store is located in a different country. Who is responsible for collecting these when I sell my gear on Blizzard’s auction house? [/QUOTE] And now that you mention “real world” issues… how about money laundering ? I doubt the fiscal powers that be will be getting copies of video game data transfers so what will be stopping Don Corleone from ploughing all his dirty money into in-game items through 10.000 micro-transactions, before turning those items back into clean real world money ? He’s got 120 cousins ready to swear they’ve been playing Diablo non stop ! ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/32 "2011-08-02T23:28:28Z")
> [@](#): > > - If you do decide to keep the money in Blizzard’s system, (as opposed to the “as of yet unnamed third-party” PayPal?) you can’t export it afterwards. Ah, yes, the First Rule of Acquisition. Presumably, though, you can at least spend Blizzbucks on other auctions, and so (eventually) get it out of the Blizzard system that way. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2011, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/33 "2011-08-02T23:34:06Z")
> [@](#): > > And now that you mention “real world” issues… how about money laundering ? I doubt the fiscal powers that be will be getting copies of video game data transfers… No reason they couldn’t, and in fact it’d be a lot easier than tracking old-fashioned meatspace transfers. Blizzard would be sure to keep detailed records for their own purposes, and I’m sure they’d turn them over on subpoena. They’ll probably also track where, when, and in the presence of which characters every item drops, too, so if Cousin Vito claims that he got that $500 from selling a rare battleaxe he found while grinding, they’ll be able to confirm or deny. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/34 "2011-08-03T00:26:36Z")
I’m not seeing money laundering from the mob as a major issue here. 😉 -XT ---
**Author:** ![Unpronounceable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9de0a6/32.png) [@Unpronounceable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unpronounceable)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/35 "2011-08-03T19:21:12Z")
a) I wonder what Blizzard’s cut of the auction proceeds is going to be? (oh, I see that they’re also relying on the float.) b) prediction: random loot drops will have a lower probability of being useable by a character than random chance should allow. (i.e. if there were 3 character classes, you’d only have a 25% chance of seeing something your class could equip, instead of 33%.) ---
**Author:** ![BlackKnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/36 "2011-08-03T20:09:23Z")
I’m far more concerned over requiring a constant internet connection for single player. I wouldn’t mind the real-money auction house if I could just ignore [Battle.net](http://Battle.net) entirely. Unfortunately, Blizzard has removed that option. It looks like another case of the “multi-player is king, screw single player” disease that infects far too many games. ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/37 "2011-08-03T20:09:28Z")
> [@xtisme](#): > > I’m not seeing money laundering from the mob as a major issue here. 😉 > > -XT Well, they did shut down online poker because of possible laundering by terrorist organizations…I wonder if the terrorists gonna be in the goldfarming market anytime soon? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Interconnected\_Series\_of\_Tubes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/13edae/32.png) [@Interconnected\_Series\_of\_Tubes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interconnected_Series_of_Tubes)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/38 "2011-08-03T20:20:24Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Ah, yes, the First Rule of Acquisition. I love you a little bit right now. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/39 "2011-08-03T21:15:05Z")
> [@](#): > > b) prediction: random loot drops will have a lower probability of being useable by a character than random chance should allow. (i.e. if there were 3 character classes, you’d only have a 25% chance of seeing something your class could equip, instead of 33%.) I doubt it. First of all, most loot in Diablo (at least, I and II) isn’t class specific. It might usually be more useful to one class or another, but there are always oddball builds that use atypical equipment. Second, a great many people play cooperatively in groups, with a mix of character classes, and even if you’re running solo, you probably have friends, or alts on your own account, with the appropriate class. Third, the drop tables will become public knowledge very quickly, and it’d be nigh-impossible to hid a drop bias like that. It won’t stop people who’ve had bad luck, or who just haven’t noticed the good luck, from complaining, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2011, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087/40 "2011-08-05T17:46:11Z")
> [@Palooka](#): > > Buying gold is awesome. Keeps you having to waste a lot of time on nonsense. It encourages Blizzard to balance their game as if people were buying gold, which makes the game worse for people who don’t want to buy gold. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diablo-3-blizzard-brings-gold-farming-to-its-gamers/591087.md?page=3)